Shaft coupling



Sept. 71943. r.'c. BReMLEY :TAL

' SHAFT COUPLING Ene@ Dem 9., 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 A 6 7 w I n/ m ,L sW w 4 i. l; m, m .8 @3, 1 WJ /W m 3 .n o@ c 74 4 miv AV g M f H M/ @IlIk l! w N fm 1 1 7 m m\ M. 1L www F sept.7,1943. T. c. BRoMLE-v Em. y2,329,153

SHAFT COUPLING l Filed D ec. 9, 1940 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Sept. 7, 1943- T.c. BROMLEY ETAI. 2,329,153

' SHAIT COUPLING Filed nec, 9, 1940 4 sheets-sheet, s

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Patented Sept. 7, 1943 OFFICE j f ,SHAFT ooUrLINcvr Thomas CharlesBromley and Arthur Shortland, Leicester, England, assignors ,to MellorBromley & Co.v Limited,` .Leicester,"England, a Britishl company n,

Application December 9, 1940, Serial No. 369,324` 'In 'GreatvritainDecember 4, 1939 v {relata} (o1. sli-27') ,This invention relates "toshaft ,couplingszand has reference more particularly to means adapt. edto couple together .aligned 'shaftszwhereby'ro-- tary motion is conveyedfrom one shaft to "an-A other.l f 'r 1 35.1,;

Although the invention is mainly'intendedlfor applicationto a machine,apparatus or mechantcal arrangement wherein one of two cofaXial shaftsis required at ,times to haverotary re- 'cip'rocatory motion in relationto the other, it is rotary reciprocatory motion at respectively diffferent times. Thus, for instances, theinvention may be embodied in acircular knitting machine of this `type wherein a rotary part isrequired to remain stationary at such times as the, cylinder head.reciprocates. In this respect the invention isv eminently suitable andis mainly intended for embodiment in a seamless hosiery machina-inconjunction .with thei means for driving the .unit comprising the'fabric winding-down mechanism and the associated'work canisterorl tin,vfor the purposeL of enablingthe latter to be' revolved bodily inrunison with the needle cylinder or cylinders during circular knitting,and tokremain stationary at such times as said cylinder orucyl nders isor are reciprocated during theprodu tion of heel and toe pouches. By theexpression Work canister or tin hereinfemployed in the following furtherdescription and in the appended claims is meant, of course, theconventional container (usuallyof cylindrical form) for reception of theknitted `fabric as it is drawn off from the needles of the machineby theaforesaid winding-down mechanism. I j n I Now, in circular knittingmachines ofv the type concerned as heretofore frequently constructed thefabric' Winding-down frame, together with `the workcanister or tin, isadapted tofbe driven in unison with the needle cylinder or cylindersthrough the medium of clutchfmechanismor suitable gearing controlledfrom a timing drum ,or chain suchwise that whenever rotary motion ofYthe machine is to be changed to rotary-reciprocatory ,motion theopposedclutch parts or the ,appropriate gears are disengaged; .f In thisway thedrive to the shaftv bymeansgofwhich thewinding-down frame andthe'` canister or tin are drivenis, temporarily interrupted, but topretotheload carried thereby a brake is usually appliedthereto. f Uponresumptionof normal ro,- tary lmotion of theY cylinder or cylinders ,ythe clutch-parts ortheaforesaid `gears are re-engaged whereupon thedriven shaft takes up the drive andthe winding-down frame Aandassociatedcanister kor tin are again rotated. In practice, jhowever, thedrive is not taken up smoothly,v since upon re-engagement of the clutchvpartsy orv thegears snatching orf/and clashing usually occurs.A u n nThe principal object ofthe present invention, thereforganisto provide,in a circular knitting machine of the type concerned, in conjunctionwith the` fabric winding-down mechanism, improved drive-transmittingmeansA designedvto ob- Viate the disadvantages aforesaid; ,y Q

Bearing in mind, however, that the invention is also of generalapplication, another object is to--provide 4a shaft coupling of improvedform as will be hereinafterdescribed. f y' l YTo `this end tWoco-aiialIshafts are coupled together byv means of plant material which is adaptedto be wound-spirally about the axis of the shafts and is of such anature that'it can eitherbe wound up tightly or uncoiled, atleastpartially; 2 n Thun-where 'one of the Vco-aXial shafts is intendentedrive the athen-'theme21 isffthatupon the pliant material (.offwhi'chthere is at least one length) being woundup tightly by effectingrelative rotation of the-shafts inthe appropriate direction, theconvolutions orcoils of said materialrwill bind Vclosely upon the shafts-or/and togetherA thereby conveying rotary motion from one shaft to theother, whereas upon the material being -unwound, either substantiallywhollyy or only partly so, by relative rotation of the shafts in thereverse direction, relaxation ofthe appropriate frictionalengagement'will result. in no motion benigtransmitted. t

Assuming, therefore, .that .the plant material is, say, in a partiallyunwound condition then upon rotation of the drivingshaft said materialwill be Wound up andas the convolutions orY coils thereof graduallybindupon the shaftsv or/and togetherl the drive willv besmoothlytransmitted from one c'oilto the other ina progressive'man-` ner untilfinally the `drive istaken up noiselessly and substantially withoutsnatch by'fthe driven shaft.v As will be appreciated,r Whenever .thepliant material vis fully wound up and both shafts are rotatingtogetherthe v'coupling is inflexible Yandas it were, quite solid so that, for

as longasrotation of the two shafts is continued,

the drive,g far from lbeing resilient, will be` trans-Amittedpositively. In thisv respect the improved couplin'gfinember'is,distinguished from what is commonly vknowr'ias a fieXible-couplingwherein the-springl or thev spirally Wound steel band permanentlymaintainsits helical form and is practo the underside of the gear wheel5 by means of screws or bolts such as 8 v(Figure l). The upper portiononly of the canister or tin 1 is showni in each of Figures l, 6 and 8.The gear wheel member to shafts which are to rotate together if alwaysin the same direction. rIhus, for instance,

such a member may be provided for the purpose Y' of enabling the drivingshaft to gather rnoxn'enf tum before rotation thereof is transmitted tothe axially opposed driven shaft, In this way the strain imposed on amotor or other source of power, in starting up, may to some extent beminimised.

An important featurelof the invention, however, resides in they adoptionof a coupling/member of the improved form for connecting togetheraxially opposed shafts 'which are required at times to be rotatedtogether in the same direction, but the driving shaft of which isadapted at other times to have a rotary reciprocatory motionwhile thedriven shaft remains stationary. In these circumstances theaforesaidrpliant ma.- terial is wound up andtransmits the drive dur-Ying rotary motion, but is merely alternately une coiled and wound upwithout transmitting the drive at such times as the driving shaft is reciprocated. So far as the coupling functions in this way it alsoconstitutes whatis the equivalent of a clutch the inter-engaging membersof which are the vadjacent `convolutions or coilsrof the flexiblematerial.

Some specific examples of the-invention embodied in the means fordriving the vfabric winding-down mechanism of a circular hosiery machineof the rotary needle cylinder type will now be described with referenceto the accompanying diagrammatic drawings.

In the drawings,

Figure 1 is an elevational View, partly insection, of so much of saidwinding-down lmechanism as isA necessary to illustrate the employment inconjunction therewith of one form of the improved drive-transmittingmeans,

Figure 2 is a fragmentary view of theI said means showing the couplingmember in af par.- tially unwound condition so thatvno motion istransmitted to the winding-down mechanism,

Figures 3 and 4 are two views showing analf ternativeform of theimproved coupling member as it appears when fully wound up and in anunwound condition respectively,

Figure 5 is a general plan view of the windingdown mechanismillustrating the provision in conjunction therewith of a still furtherform of the coupling memberas it yappears when fully wound up,

Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view thereof taken on the line VI'-VIof Figure 5, and

Figures '7 and 8 aretwo views similar to'Fig: ures 5 and 6 respectivelybut showing the coupling member in an unwound condition.

Like parts are designated by similar reference characters throughout thedrawings.

In the drawings the fabric winding-down mechanism is indicatedat A andcomprises two fabric gripping rollers I and 2 which are rotatablymounted side by side, a's shown in Figures 5 and 7, in a pair ofupstanding brackets 3 and 4. These brackets constitute bearings. for theroliers and are carried b y a gear wheelA 5. which latter is mounted torotate upon a stationary support 6. This support is rigidly secured tothe frame of the circular hosiery .knitting machine (not shown) A Workcanister or tin 1 is attached 5V is arranged to mesh with a pinion 9which is in lturn-adapted tobe driven from the needle cylv inder orcylinders of the machine. In this con nection the said pinion is securedto a vertically disposed shaft Il the lower end of which is rotatablymounted in. a bearing II formed in the support 6. The shaft I0 is drivenfrom an axially opposed driving shaft I2 which latter derives its rotarymotion from the cylinder or cylinders through Vthe medium of spur, bevelor any other suitable form of gearing. For example, a pinion secured tothe upper endof the shaft I2 may mesh with the `customarycylinder-driving gear. A casing for the accommodation of this gearing isindicated at I3 in Figure 1. In each of the examples shown, a couling B,ofy pliant material is provided Afor transmitting the drive from thedriving shaft I2 tothe coeaxial driven shaft III at appropriate times aswill be hereinafter more fully described. The arrangement is such thatduringcircular knittingthe winding-down mechanism, including thecanister or tin 1, revolves bodily in unison with the needle cylinder orcylinders of the knitting machine. At such'times as said cylinder orcylindersiis or are reciprocated, however, the winding-down mechanismremains quiescent. The gear wheel 5 has formed therein a central hole oropening 5 a through which fabric passes intothe canister or tin 1 as itis drawn off from the needles.

v In the example of the invention illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, thecoupling memberB serving to couple together the co-axial shafts It. andIl-consists of an endless belt,band, cord orthe like such as IIIofpliant material which, in a closedcondition, is wound or` coiled aboutthe opposed end portions ofthe shaftsin the manner shown suchwise thatthe convolutions or coils I4a advance progressively along the axis ar ofi said shafts.V The endless belt, band, cord or the like is inaflattened straightened or closed condition, i. e., with its oppositesides brought together so as to form a member of double form with anintegral loop at each end. Accordingly by the expression an endlessbelt, band, cord or the likein 'a closed condition used in the appendedclaims is meant a member of this form. The integral loops Mb and Mc areengaged with pins I5 and I5 projecting laterally from the drivenianddriving shafts Ii) and I2 respectively. The general formation ofthecoils Ila of the coupling member are somewhat similar to those of'acompression spring, and a member of this particular form is theequivalent of a comparatively stout single length of pliant materialhaving a loop alt each end to facilitate its `attachment to the opposedshafts. A cylindrical cover I1 is mounted concentrically with respect tothe shafts I0 and I2 and is arranged to `surround thecoiled couplingmember-.B for the purpose ofpreventing the coils-14a, thereof fromcollapsing (for instance by reason ofthem over-lapping) moreparticularly atsuch times as saidmember is being uncoiled. This coverI1, which is longer than the coupling member B' and of u somewhat,Alarger diameter than theV latter in its wound up condition, is supportedatits lower end `within a recessed portion of a plate I8 attached to thetop ofthe support E.. Atitsupper end the said cover-is secured inposition beneath the gear casing lfby meansfofamillednut I9 (see Figure1). If desired, the cylindrical cover Il may be divided longitudinallyinto front and back halves to facilitate assembly and removal. In thedrawings the front half of the cover is` removed for convenience inillustration. While the coupling member is being uncoiled theconvolutions or coils Ida thereof gradually open out and make contactwith the internal wall of the cylindrical cover Il which latterthereupon functions by reason of this contact to exercise someconstraint or control upon said convolutions or coils. The opposed endsof the shafts I and I2 are slightly separated at b to ensure that theydo not make contact.

In the example shown in Figures 3 and 4, the coupling member B consistsof a single length of at belting 2i) which is coiled about the opposedend portions of the shafts and secured at one end to the driven shaft I@by means of a screw 2I and at its opposite end to the driving shaft I2by means of a screw 22.v A single stripv or length of any suitablepliant material other than fiat belting may, of course, be used in thisexample.

Referring now to the still further embodiment of the invention depictedin Figures 5 to 8, the coupling member Bconsists of a length 23 ofpliant material of at form in cross section which is wound about a fixedpoint c, viz. the centre of ther shaft I2, suchwise that theconvolutions or coils 23a gradually increase in diameter and thecoupling member lies in one plane like a watch spring. In thisembodiment the couplingy member is accommodated within a circular recess9a formed in the top of the pinion 8. The internal wall of this recesssurrounds the coiled coupling member B and the diameter thereof issomewhat in excess of 4.the diameter of the outermost convolution orcoil of said member when the latter is in the unwound conditionrepresented in Figures 7 and 8. As shown in Figures 5 and 7 one end ofthe coupling member is attached at 24 to the' pinion SJ which latter is,of course, fast on the driven shaft I0, while the other end is attachedat 25 to the driving shaft I2. To enable the coiled coupling member tobe clearly seen in each of Figures 5 and 7, the cylindrical cover Il andthe plate I8 have been omitted from the latter.

In the foregoing examples the coupling member B may be made of anysuitable pliant material. For instance, either wire rope or cotton ropemay be employed for the intended purpose. Alternatively, leather ofcircular, flat or any other suitable cross-sectional shape may be used,Aor the coupling member may even consist of a closely coiled pliant wireor the like capable of being readily wound up and uncoiled in the mannerrequired. Rope o-r the equivalent having a covering of rubber-howeverappliedmay also be employed. Again the material, irrespectively as towhether it is in a single length or in the form of an endless belt, bandor cord, may either be inextensible or capable of longitudinal stretch.In this latter respect elastic cord may be adopted. Material comprisinga rubber core with a textile covering is also suitable. Moreover, acoupling member consisting of an elastic endless bandy which is formedof a multiplicity of threads constituting a core having an outercovering or binding of threads braided on or similarly applied may, ifdesired, be-used.

The construction is such in each of the examples described that wheneverthe cylinder ar cylinders is or are reciprocating, the shaft I2 driventherefrom is alternately rotated first in one and then in the oppositedirection so thatI the associated coupling member B is merelyalternately uncoiled and wound up without transmitting the drive to theopposed shaft I0 whereby the fabric winding-down mechanism, includingthe work canister or tin 1, remains stationary. Upon re- 'fsumption ofrotary knitting,-however, the coupling member B is wound up so that inthe result the winding-down from and work canister or tin is driven inunison with the cylinder or cylinders. The driving shaft I2 may beturned through, say, four complete revolutions-two in one direction andthen two in the opposite direction-at each reciprocation of the needlecylinder or cylinders during reciprocatory knitting. The work canisteror tin 'I may or may not have in association therewith a brake adaptedto be applied thereto during reciprocatory knitting.

As an alternative to the cylindrical cover Il hereinbefore describedthere may be provided for the same purpose a similarly arranged tubewhich is supported at its opposite ends by collars mounted upon theshafts I0 and I2. The collars are suitably spaced apart, one of thembeing rigidly secured to one of the shafts, e. g. by means of one ormore screws, and the other being free upon the opposed shaft. The tubemay be attached to or supported upon the collars by any suitable meansor in any suitable manner, and if desired said collars may be formedwith flanges adapted to bear upon or engage the opposite ends of thetube. The opposed ends of the shafts I0 and I2 may, if desired, beseparated somewhat in which instance a comparatively short tube or asimilar covering may be applied to the shafts suchwise as to coverthespace between the said opposed ends therebyL preventing the `coils ofthe coupling member from entering or/and becoming trapped between them;if provided, such a tube or covering must, of course, be of such acharacter or/and be so applied as freely to per` mit of relativerotation of the shafts. For eX- ample, a flexible tube, e. g. of rubber,may be placed over the ends of the shafts, this tube being capable ofbeing twisted upon relative rotation of the shafts. For the samepurpose, a .coiled steel strip with overlapping coils may be applied tothe opposed ends of the shafts so as in effect to provide a collapsibletube. Or the tube may be a solid one in which instance it would berigidly secured to the end of one of the shafts and be free upon the endof the opposed shaft` What we claim then is:

Mechanism including a driving shaft adapted 'to have continuous rotarymotion and rotary reciprocatory motion at respectively different times,another shaft disposed in end to end relation with respect to saiddriving shaft, a coupling for the shafts comprising a pliable andsubstantially non-resilient element having one of its ends secured toeach of said shafts coiled about the axis of said shafts, said elementbeing adapted to be wound up tightly so as to transmit rotary motionfromthe driving shaft to the opposed shaft at such times as the drivingshaft is rotated continuously but capable of freely unwinding so thati1; will alternately be wound up and uncoiled without transmitting thedrive whenever said driving shaft has rotary reciprocatory motionimparted to it.

THOMAS CHARLES BROMLEY. ARTHUR SHORTLAND.

